With the Big Green Teams

IF hockey games lasted only 40 minutes instead of 60, Dartmouth's skaters would have one of the best records in the East this season.

In their first eleven games, the Indians have been either ahead or tied in seven games entering the final period. The actual record of three wins, six losses and two ties doesn't really offer a clue that, as Coach Ab Oakes points out, "This team is turning the corner."

Turning what corner? After more than three seasons of woe in the face of their Ivy League rivals, the Indians are beginning to generate the momentum that makes Oakes' pre-season objective of a break-even season appear within the realm of possibility.

"We are predominantly a sophomore team," said Oakes, "and it's only through game experience that we'll mature into a good team. I think we began to show the elements of good hockey during the ECAC holiday tournament (in mid-December) and with the exception of our game with Boston College, we've been making steady progress."

Boston College ranks among the East's best this season and defeated Dartmouth 10-2 in early January. The Indians stormed back three nights later to defeat Yale in New Haven, 4-3, in what Oakes rates as Dartmouth's most impressive victory in three seasons.

"Most of our victories over the past two years have come against Division II (small college) teams," said Oakes. "The last time we won a 'big' game was against Yale in 1966. That was Eddie Jeremiah's 300th win."

The ECAC Tournament in Madison Square Garden saw the Indians take a 4-1 lead in the first period against Clarkson but then fall behind early in the third period and bow, 9-4. In the consolation game, the Big Green kept coming back and played Brown to a 5-5 tie.

"Both of those games showed us we could score goals against good competition," said Oakes. "We knew that we'd have problems on defense and I have to believe that 'maturity' will help solve this situation for us."

Coming out of the holidays, Dart- mouth played another tie, this time a 7-7 standoff with Army after the Indians had been on top 6-1 in the second period. Then came the victory over Yale.

A trip to Cambridge for a return engagement with Harvard was next on the agenda. In early December, the Crimson came to Hanover and methodically battered the Green, 11-2. The visit to Watson Rink showed Dartmouth's continuing improvement as Harvard was unable to wear down the Indians until the final period when four goals into the Dartmouth nets wiped away the Indians' 3-2 lead after two periods.

The friendly confines of Davis Rink provided the setting for the Indians' best offensive explosion of the season on January 18 against Penn. The final score was 8-2 for the Green, with a total of 121 shots being peppered at the Quaker goal.

The scoring punch on this hockey team is coming from the sophomore line of Dave Hill (Don Mills, Ont.), Jeff Kosak (Coleraine, Minn.) and Ken David- son (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.). Beginning against Army, Hill scored ten goals in five games, including the three-goal hat trick against Army. Hill had a total of 16 points after 11 games, while Kosak had 14 and Davidson 12.

"Hill reminds people of Bruce Mather, an outstanding scorer during the mid-40's," said Oakes. "He isn't as strong as Davidson but has tremendous stick moves. Kosak has strong moves on the wing and is starting to play well. He was lost for much of his freshman season with a broken collarbone."

The sophomore line has been provid- ing most of the scoring and Oakes feels he has a good checking line in Captain Robie Cann (Melrose, Mass.), Tom Coffman (Minneapolis, Minn.), and Pete Stone (Potsdam, N. Y.). The attack lost some of its power when Kent Nyberg, the outstanding junior from Coleraine, Minn., was lost for the season against Clarkson with a broken wrist.

"I doubt that we'll get Nyberg back this season but we have hopes for the return of Denis O'Neill," said Oakes. O'Neill is from Greens Farms, Conn., and was working with senior Joe Fahey (Melrose, Mass.) as the first defensive pair when he suffered a knee injury in the first Harvard game. Fahey, by the way, is rated the most improved player on the team this season.

O'Neill underwent surgery and is ex- pected to resume play in February. "Denis played the line in high school but was converted to defense at Dartmouth," said Oakes. Fahey and Gary Goodenough have developed well and we may try to fit Denis into the attack."

Goalie Tom Schuster, a junior from Edina, Minn., who played one game as a sophomore, is also showing improvement with each game. His goals-allowed average is not impressive but the overall improvement on defense is combining with his progress in the nets.

"The third-period lapses have hurt us," said Oakes. "A .500 season is a long shot, but not impossible. We also have a good chance to finish third in the Ivy League if we have any luck against Princeton, Brown, and Penn." Cornell and Harvard are headed for a 1-2 finish in the League but the fight for third looks easily to be a four- or five-team race.

Junior Karl Steinmanis (23) moves to intercept a pass against Canisius in the QueenCity Tournament at Buffalo, N. Y. Captain Greg Pickering (31) and Alex Winn (behind Steinmanis) also were part of Dartmouth's tight defensive play.

Sophomore wing Dave Hill, top Dartmouth scorer in the first 11 games, makeshis move against Harvard's George McManama. The Crimson won 6-3.